RESTAURANT MARKETING
Restaurant marketing: 7 ways to attract more guests to your restaurant
From targeted emails to rethinking your offer: discover how to reach more guests, fill quiet days and keep guests coming back.
Published by team FRANK • 8-minute read
In this article
A full Saturday is great. But how do you get more bookings on Wednesday too? Discover seven practical ways to reach new guests and bring previous guests back.
You post a photo of the new menu. The likes come in, but Thursday’s bookings lag behind. Meanwhile, Saturday is almost full again.
That’s an important distinction in restaurant marketing. You want to reach guests who can visit when you still have space.
So start with your bookings. Which service needs more guests? Are too few new guests coming, or do previous guests rarely return? Can interested guests easily book a table?
These questions help you decide where to spend your time and budget. In this article, we share seven ways to attract more guests to your restaurant, with examples you can apply to your own situation.
What is restaurant marketing?
Restaurant marketing covers the activities that promote your restaurant and encourage guests to dine with you or return. Think Google visibility, email campaigns, restaurant platforms and local partnerships.
How these activities connect determines their impact. A guest discovers your restaurant, looks for information and decides whether to book. An outdated menu or unclear booking link can interrupt that journey.
Set a specific goal first. For example: an average of ten extra covers on Thursdays over the next four weeks. This is an example, not a prediction. Choose a number that fits your capacity and current occupancy.
01. Make your restaurant easier to find on Google Maps
A guest searching for a nearby restaurant often already has a reason to eat out. They may want somewhere for a business lunch, a terrace or dinner before a show.
Your Google Business Profile helps them decide whether your restaurant fits. Google recommends complete, current business information. Local results depend partly on relevance, distance and prominence; you can’t simply buy a higher ranking.
Check your opening hours, including holidays. Add clear photos of your dishes and space. Show guests how to book and keep your menu up to date.
Answer questions before a visit
Can guests see roughly what dinner costs? Are there vegetarian options? Is the terrace only open in good weather?
Put this information on your website too. A clear description such as “lunch and dinner overlooking the harbour” helps more than a general promise of a special experience.
What you can do now: view your business profile on your phone as if you’ve just discovered your restaurant. Open the menu and follow the steps to book. Note where information is missing.
02. Use email marketing to bring guests back
A guest may have had a wonderful evening, then hear nothing from you for months. Your restaurant can easily slip their mind when they plan their next evening out.
A relevant email gives them a reason to book again. Think of a new seasonal menu, a winemaker’s dinner or a special lunch. Be specific. What can guests expect? When is it happening? What does it cost? And where can they book?
Lead with the occasion
Compare “It’s time for our newsletter again” with “Our game menu is available to book from Thursday”.
The second message immediately gives the reader a reason to read on.
You don’t need to put everything in one email. One clear invitation with a suitable photo and booking button can be enough.
With FRANK, you can send email campaigns directly from your restaurant software. Invite previous guests back for another visit.
03. Reach new guests through restaurant platforms
Platforms such as HEERLIJK and Dinestar can be part of your restaurant marketing. They give guests another place to discover your restaurant and plan a visit.
Decide which audience you want to reach and which tables to offer. Extra bookings on an evening that would fill up anyway have a different value from new guests during a quiet service.
FRANK’s integrations send bookings from HEERLIJK and Dinestar to your reservation system. This helps you manage them alongside your other bookings.
Assess the return per visit
Check the partnership terms. Do you pay commission per booking? Is a special menu required? What availability rules apply?
Then assess what each booking brings in after the associated costs. More guests don’t automatically mean a better return.
04. Fill quiet services with tickets for special experiences
“We still have tables on Thursday” may work for guests already planning to visit. Others need a reason to choose that evening.
A unique offer gives them one. Think of an early-bird dinner before a show, a lunch for nearby businesses or a dinner built around one seasonal ingredient.
FRANK’s tickets let you offer these experiences flexibly to suit your goals. You choose what to sell, when it’s available and how many places to offer. This aligns your offer with the services you want to fill.
Then promote the experience with an email campaign you can create in FRANK in just a few clicks.
What you can do now
Choose one quiet service and create an experience that fits your restaurant.
Set a suitable price, offer it through tickets and send a targeted email invitation.
Measure the results: check how many tickets you sell and what the experience earns after extra costs.
This shows which format is worth repeating.
05. Use reviews to build trust with new guests
A potential guest wants to know what visiting your restaurant feels like. Your photos and menu give a first impression. Reviews add other guests’ experiences.
A comment about a warm welcome, a surprising menu or a well-run group dinner may resolve the very doubt holding someone back.
FRANK supports automatic review requests after a visit. Invite guests to share their experience.
What you can do now
Read your recent reviews and look for recurring themes.
Use your strengths to describe your restaurant more clearly and address issues that could affect a future visit.
Want to reuse a guest’s experience on your website or in a campaign?
Ask permission and preserve the original meaning.
06. Use holidays and themed days to inspire a visit
Christmas and Valentine’s Day are familiar moments for restaurant marketing. But your calendar offers many more opportunities.
Think National Pizza Day, the start of asparagus season, a local festival or the first summer evenings on the terrace. Your restaurant’s anniversary can also be a good occasion.
These moments give you something to talk about and guests a reason to set a date.
07. Create an appealing combo offer or BOGO deal
BOGO means buy one, get one: when guests buy one item, they get a second one with it. This could be a two-for-one deal or a food and drink combination.
Think Taco Tuesday with a margarita included in every taco package. Or a lunch menu with coffee on a quiet afternoon.
A clear offer can help guests choose your restaurant and a specific time to visit.
Calculate the costs first
Define exactly what guests get and at what price. Include the costs of both items, even if you present one as a gift.
Consider the effect on existing bookings too. An offer can attract extra guests, but people who would have visited anyway may also use it.
Where appropriate, limit the offer to a specific service, time slot or number of places. Keep the terms easy to explain.
Make it easy to turn interest into a booking
Whatever marketing approach you choose, the final step deserves equal attention: can an interested guest easily book?
Someone clicking through an email about your Sunday brunch wants to book that brunch. Someone seeing your Taco Tuesday promotion on Instagram wants to find that offer.
Send people to a page that matches the message. Show the relevant information and a clear way to book.
Check the mobile booking experience
Is the booking button easy to find? Are the price, availability and any payment terms clear? Does the guest reach the right experience?
The FRANK widget lets guests book through your own website. For a specific experience or promotion, direct them to the relevant tickets.
Your marketing has done its job when someone wants to visit. Make sure that interest can turn into a booking without unnecessary steps.
